Cave rescue: ‘Four more boys rescued’ by divers

Cave divers in northern Thailand have rescued four more boys from a vast flooded cave system, a source within the operation has told the BBC.

This suggests that, in total, eight boys have been safely brought out, while five people remain inside the caves.

The 12 boys and their football coach were trapped in the cave on 23 June after heavy rains caused flooding.

They were found alive last week by divers.

Four boys were brought out safely on Sunday, but the mission was paused overnight for air tanks to be replaced.

There has been no official confirmation from the Thai Navy Seals leading the rescue operation that anyone was brought out of the cave system on Monday, the second day of a complex operation.

Before the source told the BBC’s Jonathan Head that four more boys had been rescued in Monday, BBC teams saw air ambulances departing from the cave system and ambulances arriving at the hospital in the nearby town of Chiang Rai.